Cameron Wake signs extension, Dolphins on a roll

More positive news for the Dolphins: They will not have an ugly or contentious contract holdout from Cameron Wake this summer.

Wake has signed a four-year contract extension with the Dolphins that will pay him $20 million in guaranteed money, according to an NFL source. The amount of the extension is unclear although ESPN's Adam Schefter is reporting it is worth $49 million. Schefter was the first to report the extension. The Dolphins have released a statement confirming it.

“We are pleased that we were able to reach an agreement with Cam and his agent, Paul Sheehy to extend Cam’s contract,” said Dolphins General Manager Jeff Ireland. “Cam has been a productive player ever since he joined the Dolphins, and has been a great teammate and an outstanding citizen. His work ethic and professionalism on the field and in the locker room has made him a leader by example. We also appreciate all the community activities he has done. We always try to reward our own players for their contributions to the team and Cam certainly deserves that recognition. I want to thank Cam and Paul for their hard work in getting this extension done.”

The true amount of the extension will be determined when the actual contract is signed and available for inspection.

Postive news has been a trend for the Dolphins of late, as I write in my column in today's Miami Herald. I make the point in the column that after a very, very, very rough patch in March, the club has climbed out of the mire and is getting some positive reviews from fans, the media, and others around the NFL.

The draft had a lot to do with this and, more importantly, the drafting of Ryan Tannehill.

I know a lot of you are going to ask where exactly the Dolphins are getting all this cap space for Wake. Well, the majority of the space being used is not in 2012 but in 2013 and beyond. I assume the deal has a big bonus payable this year that will be prorated over the life of the deal through 2016. That will serve in bringing Wake's pay this year, originally scheduled at $615,000, up to his current performance levels while only a prorated portion of it counts toward this year's cap.

Obviously, the Dolphins must sign their draft picks and have work to do in getting an extension with Jake Long as well but this deal should not preclude them from doing that